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John Millen

Starring: Orson Welles and Joseph Cotten
Director: Orson Welles
Year of original release: 1941
Genre: Mystery drama
Set-up 
 Ask any film critic, and they'll say Citizen Kane is one of the best movies ever made. Citizen Kane also tops many 'Greatest Films Ever Made' surveys carried out by movie magazines. It was Orson Welles' first feature film, and did not do well at the box office. Critics praised its acting, story, black and white photography and music, but the public stayed away.   
The public began to appreciate Citizen Kane after  it was re-released in the mid-1950s. It was shown on television, and then video and DVD releases brought the film to more people, and its reputation grew. Movie fans should watch the film at least once - just  to see what all the fuss is about.
 Plot 
 Charles Foster Kane, a wealthy media man, lives alone in a vast estate called 'Xanadu'. When he dies uttering the single word 'rosebud', newsmen from all over the world descend on his mansion. They sense there is a juicy story behind the great man's  lonely death. 
Kane's life-story is then told in flashback. He is born into a poor family, but works his way up, eventually getting a job on a New York newspaper. Kane relies on yellow journalism - eye-catching articles which capture readers' interest - to build up his power and boost the paper's sales figures.
 Kane gains control of the newspaper and joins politics. He earns a lot of money and builds a magnificent mansion. But his marriage and personal life suffer. 
 Kane spends his final years hiding secrets he hopes will never be discovered. What is the truth about Charles Foster Kane?
Hearst
 Citizen Kane ran into big trouble as soon as it opened in cinemas in May, 1941. Newspaper owner William Randolph Hearst (above), one of the richest and most powerful men in America, was convinced that the character of Charles Foster Kane was based on his business and private life. He did not like this at all. But  he couldn't do anything about it.
Hearst tried but failed to stop the film being shown, and he refused to allow any of his magazines and newspapers to advertise or write about the movie. Hearst was a controversial figure who had a lot of enemies. He was not afraid to twist the truth in order to sell more newspapers. He made a fortune out of publishing, and built a huge estate on the Californian coast at San Simeon.
Yellow journalism
 Some newspapers still use yellow journalism to boost their popularity and circulation. In yellow journalism, facts are altered to grab the readers' attention and sell more newspapers. 
The term originated in New York in the late 19th century during a circulation war between two rival newspapers, New York World and New York Journal. NYJ publisher W.R. Hearst asked his journalists to add more colour to their articles so that more people would buy the newspaper.
 Gossip Girl
 Louella Parsons (1881-1972) wasn't a movie star, director or producer - she was a newspaper gossip columnist. In the 1940s and 50s, she was one of the most powerful women in Hollywood. With one paragraph, she could build or destroy the reputation of anyone working in the movie business. Film stars knew they had to keep any little secrets of their past very well hidden.
Parsons (above and right) started early in journalism. She became the theatre editor of a local newspaper when she was still at school. She wrote the world's first celebrity gossip column for the Chicago Record Herald in 1914. Nine years later, she joined William Randolph Hearst's media empire, where she stayed until her retirement in 1965.
Parson's power grew steadily, as she built up a readership of more than 20 million. Her daily gossip column appeared  in 400 newspapers across America. She had a clever knack of sniffing out the juiciest star gossip and digging up the deepest secrets.
Parsons died in a Hollywood nursing home in 1972. She was the writer who launched the gossip industry that is still very much alive in newspapers today.
And Xanadu ...
Xanadu was the summer capital of Mongol Emperor Kublai Khan's Yuan dynasty in 13th century China. The city had elegant palaces, fragrant gardens and beautiful buildings. It was situated north of Beijing near the modern town of Duolun. 
Italian explorer Marco Polo, who visited Xanadu in 1275, wrote in his journal: 'There are fountains and rivers and brooks, and beautiful meadows with all kinds of wild animals. In the marble palace, the rooms are gilt and painted with figures of men, beasts, birds, flowers and trees. You look at them all with astonishment and delight.'
 Xanadu was the inspiration for the vast private estate that Charles Foster Kane built for himself in Citizen Kane. Kane wanted to show off his wealth and power, just as Kublai Khan had done hundreds of years ago.



Citizen Kane